1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates, in general, to a battery pack for portable electronic systems and, more particularly, to a multi-unit battery pack comprising a plurality of small-sized single-unit battery packs, individually consisting of a small number of unit battery cells. The present invention also relates to a system designed for installing the single-unit battery packs in separate small seats of a main body, thus allowing a more flexible layout of an installation area for auxiliary equipment and improving the designing flexibility of the main body.
2. Background Art
Recently, portable computers have become a popular alternative to traditional desktop computers in terms of their movability, simplicity, and various functions. Furthermore, various expansion devices have been developed that enable the portable computer to extend its battery life as well as its multimedia capabilities. This development has been spurred by users' desires to overcome the inherent functional limitations, with respect to size, weight, and battery life, of portable computers. Some common expansion devices, also referred to as peripheral devices, are, for example, external speakers, external CD-ROM drives, external batteries, or AC adapters. With the continuing trend toward miniaturization, many peripheral devices can now be included as internal components in a portable computer. However, to properly power a portable computer, and the internal components, the design of the battery is critical.
Some techniques for designing batteries for a portable computer are shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,483,437 to Tang entitled Power Supply Arrangement for Notebook Computers, U.S. Pat. No. 5,621,301 to Allen entitled Connecting Multiple Batteries to Battery Powered Devices, U.S. Pat. No. 5,553,294 to Nanno entitled Portable Computer Powered by Rechargeable Batteries, U.S. Pat. No. 5,148,042 to Nakazoe entitled Small Electronic Device Capable of Switching Batteries by Releasing a Battery Locking Mechanism, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,784,626 to Odaohara entitled Battery Connecting Device for a Computer System and a Method of Switching Batteries. Each of the cited references has elements in common with the current invention.
While the laptop computer is being designed in a more miniature fashion, limitations are incurred by the fact that battery size has still remained fairly large. This results in laptops needing correspondingly large battery seats to accommodate the battery. Needing to devote a significant amount of continuous space inside a portable computer to supporting a battery leads to design and layout restrictions that make it more difficult to incorporate further components into the portable computer.
As such, I believe that the contemporary art can be improved by providing a portable computer that divides up one battery into multiple sub-batteries that are serially connected, that are mounted on smaller seats that are in different locations in the portable computer, that allows further integration of components into the portable computer, and that reduces the layout restrictions that must be accommodated when the portable computer is being designed.